Another Universe, Another Story
by fluffdog
Summary: A series of AU stories, beginning with pirates and continuing with whatever the reader wants.


**Title: **A Pirate's Life for Me  
**Prompt: **Mutiny (No. 1358)  
**Source:** _Prompt_of_Day_ Community on LiveJournal  
**Pairing:** Naruto/Hinata  
**Author's Notes:** This is Part 1 of ?. I'm thinking around another chapter or two, but that's it.  
**Disclaimer:** Do not own anything here that would get me sued if I claimed otherwise.

* * *

Moegi, arms crossed and eyes furrowed, directed her two shipmates as they attempted to push a sleeping Naruto out of the small boat.

"Okay you guys, be careful. Not too sudden or else it'll rock the boat. When I count to three, roll him off and then stabilize the boat in case we might flip over. One…Two…Three!"

With a couple of deep breaths, Konohamaru and Udon heaved the blond over the vessel's side and into the water. It was quite the difficult task to do when not only were they both sitting down instead of standing, lest they wanted to capsize, but also because Naruto was practically dead weight when he slept.

At least he slept like the dead too.

The splash his body created suddenly moved the dinghy and threatened to tip it over, scaring Moegi into shouting, "Stabilize it!"

All three of them quickly grabbed the sides in hopes that their little wooden boat wouldn't betray them to the water.

Naruto, literally shocked awake by the freezing water, however, took a second to grasp situation and wildly flailed his arms as he tried to get his bearings. "Help! I'm drowning!" he screamed as he created dangerous waves that knocked viciously against the boat.

"Stop flailing around Naruto-nii!" Konohamaru cried as he tightened his hold on the sides. "You're going to make us fall into the water!"

Udon, on the other hand, let go of the boat to grab his stomach. "Urgh…I think I'm going to be sick," he whimpered pitifully.

"What's going on?" the blond wailed as he stopped his violent movements when he realized that yes, he could swim and no, he wasn't going to drown anytime soon despite the current situation. "Why did you guys push me off?"

Moegi leaned over to Naruto's direction and stated, "Uzumaki Naruto, ex-captain of the Ichiraku, if you hadn't realized this is a mutiny, than you are dumber than I thought you were."

"A mutinous crew?" he gasped. The pirate swam closer and latched onto the edge.

A nod from Konohamaru answered his question. "As you would say sometimes, Naruto-nii, 'believe it'." He paused for a moment and then continued on. "I guess you could say that we're tired of having you as our captain. It's troublesome, you know, staying with you. Most of the crew's blunders are your fault. I mean, we lost the Ichiraku because of your irresponsible leadership."

"Hey! That was an accident!" Naruto yelped indignantly, but Konohamaru paid no heed to his words.

"We're no longer allowed in Konoha's ports because of you," he added.

"Wait, their leader's apprentice was hitting on me. It isn't my fault she couldn't resist my irresistible charms," he said, having the audacity to look innocent.

Moegi snarled, "No…you were the one hitting on her!" She picked up the boat's only oar and smacked her captain over the head multiple times, despite the obvious and deafening protests.

Udon took over. "Gaara of the Sand wants to kill us, just because we're part of your crew," he sniffed.

Naruto glared at the perpetually sick boy, making him cower back in fear. "Okay look, how many times do I have to explain to you? _He_ was the one who tried to kill _me_ first. I was only trying to protect myself!"

"By sneaking onto his ship and setting fire to the sails?" Moegi shrieked.

She hit him a couple more times with the oar without giving him a chance to reply, but this time with more force. The loud thunks almost made Konohamaru feel sorry for him. But then he began to remember the other occasions where he, Udon, and Moegi were put in danger.

"Orochimaru and his crazy assistant want my body," Konohamaru said.

"I can't help it if you happen to be a fine piece of specimen in their eyes. If you just, oh I don't know, donate a kidney to them or something, they'll leave you alone," the pirate captain answered in between Moegi's hits. "…Eventually."

Naruto's self-proclaimed little brother actually growled at him, causing him to duck in fear. Just a little though.

It was time to take a different route. "I don't think you guys can survive without my expertise and knowledge of the sea."

Moegi snorted and replied, "What expertise? We've already established that you are a horrible captain. Dead last. You were the one who lost us the Ichiraku and now we don't have any provisions."

"No I'm not! Maybe you're just a horrible crew who never listen to your captain!" Naruto quickly sputtered defensively, his voice reaching a higher octave every other word. But after a couple seconds he sighed and said in his normal voice, "You guys aren't joking are you? What about the history between us? Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

He took this time to stare into their eyes, one by one, starting from Udon and ending with Moegi, with Konohamaru in the middle. The sun's rays, beating against the three's backs, shined in the cracks between their bodies and hit Naruto's eyes. He squinted and raised a hand to block out the harsh light. The other tightened its grip on the boat while he continued to tread water.

None of the three answered immediately, until Konohamaru said slowly, "Naruto-nii. I don't know how to break this to you but," he paused, "we're pirates. There is no such thing as honor or history between pirates."

"I know, I know! No need to tell me. I was the one who told you guys that." The betrayed captain sighed once more, this time louder and more exaggerated than the first and said, "Well, hand me my hat and I'll be off. You sure you guys can take care of yourselves?"

"If being with you has taught us anything, it's the basics of being a pirate. We'll reach land soon and start over," Konohamaru snorted as Udon set Naruto's hat atop of his spiky-haired head.

"Thanks. So, I guess as of right now, the Ichiraku Ramen pirate crew has officially disbanded!" he declared.

"I'm surprised you're taking this well, ex-Captain," Moegi said. "We thought pushing you over when you least expected it would have worked but apparently reasoning with you works just as well."

Naruto shrugged and let go of the boat. "It's all part of Uzumaki Naruto's Great Adventure. I take it as it comes."

He looked to his left and then to his right, trying to find land. Instead, however, he spied a ship far away into the distance. "Next destination," he proclaimed and pointed in the general direction, "soon-to-be Naruto's ship over there! Alright you guys, I guess this is goodbye. Time to find a new crew to captain."

He took a deep breath, clapped a hand on his hat to keep it from floating away, and dove into the water. He could hear the faint goodbyes of his mutinous friends and when he resurfaced, they were meters away, still waving at him.

"Well, that went well," Moegi said. She shoved the oar into Udon's hands. "Here, you row."

"Mrrgh, can't," the seasick boy groaned painfully. "Move away Moegi. This isn't going to be pretty."

* * *

It wasn't until an hour later that Naruto reached the ship he spied when he was with his crew, or ex-crew now. The vessel was always in his line of vision and his mind and body never wavered from his task. Some would say that having lasted that long in the water without a stop from swimming was just short of a miracle. The others, however, would just scoff and say they didn't know Naruto too well.

And all this time, he managed not to lose his hat.

Naruto grabbed onto a stray rope and slowly climbed his way up. His body was fatigued, however, making the climb slower than it would have been if he were energized. Yet it was good he was moving like a snail since he didn't want to catch anyone's attention.

By the time he reached the top of the great ship, it was nightfall. With the little strength he had left, he grabbed the boat's edge and threw himself onto the deck. He laid there, exhausted, sucking in mouthfuls of air. It wasn't until a minute later that Naruto realized he was being watched. He turned his head upward and looked into the pale gaze of his observer.

"Why, hello there, pretty one," he said breathlessly.

She gave a little shriek before fainting, causing the basket of biscuits she had in her hands to spill all over the floor.

"I know, I'm just that handsome, aren't I?"

Nobody answered.

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**End Notes: **Did you know that people feel heavier when they are asleep than when they are awake?

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed reading this. :) However, it is **important to note** that the next chapter will not be related to this one. I'm thinking of experimenting with different universes. But I will come back and finish this one eventually.

Have a prompt and/or a universe (and/or a pairing) you want me to write about? Leave it in a review or message me. Hopefully I'll get inspiration from your ideas :) (Highest rating I'll go is T)


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